Compassionate slaughter of animals

Peter Stevenson

Compassion in World Farming

Arrival at the slaughterhouse: unloading• Often no ramps are used to unload animals, forcing them to jump, fall or be

thrown off

No ramp: the two men pushed and pulled the camel until it fell off the truck to the ground

© Animals Australia

The camel is then draggedinto the slaughterhouse

Ramp too steep and no side-protection

© Eyes on Animals &Animal Welfare Foundation

Moving animals in the slaughterhouse

Cattle are often beaten with sticks or poles to force themto move - this is unacceptable

© Animals Australia

This animal is beaten so hard that it collapses

In Lebanon sheep are dragged by rear leg to slaughter point – this is a common practice in many slaughterhouses

At slaughter point animals are thrownon their back in readiness for throat cutting

In Egypt cattle are beaten on the head with a pole. It can take several blows before the animal is so dazed that it falls to the ground when its throat is cut.

In Egypt the leg tendons of cattle are often slashed to control the animals

© Animals Australia

In Egypt cattle’s eyes are sometimes gouged tocontrol them

Ismailia, Egypt: live animal withstabbed eyes and cut legtendons

© Animals Australia

In Lebanon cattle are suspended from a rear leg inreadiness for throat cut

These two cattle were leftsuspended for over an hourbefore their throats were cut

In Turkey cattle aresuspended for throatcutting

© Eyes on Animals &Animal Welfare Foundation

Sokhna, Egypt: Conscious animal being inverted in readiness for throat cut

© Animals Australia

West Bank: After throat cutting, but before the animals lose consciousness they are dropped out of the box, on top of the bodies of other (still conscious) animals

© Animals Australia

Do not start any procedures on the animal until it is dead

• Considerable time gap between throat cut and death

• Do not start any procedures (e.g. pumping air between sheep’s body & its fleece) after the throat cut until the absence of signs of life has been verified

Do not start any procedures on the animal until it is dead

Sokhna, Egypt: animal hoisted after throat cut while it is stillconscious

© Animals Australia

Some slaughtermen do not perform a proper full cut across the throat. Instead they simply stab the knife into the neck. Even after several such stabs, the animals remain standing on all four legs while they slowly bleed from a small hole in the throat. Eventually – sometimes minutes after the first stab - the animals collapse to the ground.

© Animals Australia

Suffering when throat is cut

• Cutting throat of conscious animal causes extreme pain:– during throat cut– in the period between throat cut and loss of consciousness

• European Food Safety Authority (EFSA): “The rapid decrease in blood pressure which follows the blood loss is readily detected by the conscious animal and elicits fear and panic.

• Poor welfare also results when conscious animals inhale blood because of bleeding into the trachea [windpipe]”

How long does it take after throat cut for animal to lose ability to feel pain?

• Even if the correct blood vessels are cut it can take 2 minutes for cattle and 20 seconds for sheep to lose sensibility

• If main blood vessels are not severed it can take much longer –– it can take cattle about 5 minutes– it can take sheep 70 seconds to lose sensibility where only one

carotid artery is severed - where only the jugular veins are severed, it can take about 5 minutes

Cattle: Time in minutes from throat cut to loss of sensibility

Sheep: time in minutes from throat cut to loss of sensibility

Stunning prevents the suffering involved in the throat cut and the period between the cut and loss of sensibility

A stun makes the animal instantaneously unconscious. This unconsciousness must last until the throat is cut and the animal dies through loss of blood

Electrical stunning

• Must be head-only so that animal is alive – but unconscious – at time of throat cut

© FAO

Electrical stunning equipment

Electrode position for sheep (front view)

Electrode position for sheep (side view)

© Humane Slaughter Association

Sheep/goats minimum stunning current: 1 Ampminimum application time of stun: 3 seconds

Head-only electrical stunning of cattle

CattleCattle over 6 months: minimum stunning current: 1.5 ampsCattle under 6 months: minimum stunning current: 1.25 ampsminimum application time of stun: 3 seconds

Head-only electrical stunning is reversible

• It does not kill, it simply makes the animal unconscious• Sheep begin to recover about 30 seconds after the stun• Cattle begin to recover about 45 seconds after the stun (calves after

about 40 seconds)• Signs of recovery: return of rhythmic breathing

Vital to have short time gap between stun and throat cut

• Because animals will recover from the stun quite quickly, the time gap between the stun and the throat cut must be as short as possible – the maximum should be 15 seconds

• If the time gap between stunning and throat cutting is too long, the animal may regain consciousness as it bleeds to death

Non-penetrative captive bolt stunning for cattle

Position for non-penetrativecaptive bolt

© Humane Slaughter Association

Non-penetrative captive bolt stunning is reversible, so it is vital to keep the time gap between the stun and the throat cut as short as possible – the maximum should be 20 seconds (this is figure in OIE standards)

Loss of blood not reduced by stunning

• Studies by Dr Haluk Anil and other scientists compared slaughter of sheep and cattle with and without stunning

• Sheep and cattle: bleed out is not adversely affected by stunning, nor improved by neck cutting without stunning

Beating them

Unacceptable way of restraining cattle

Severing leg tendons

Suspending them

Cattle should be placed in arestraining box

© Temple Grandin

© Eyes on Animals &Animal Welfare Foundation

© Animals Australia

© FAO

Cattle should be restrained before stunning

Cattle stunning box

Cattle should be restrained for slaughter without stunning

Small, tame cattle can be held – calmly – while they are slaughteredIn a standing position. But most cattle should be restrained.

© Temple Grandin

If cattle are not restrained, it is difficult to cut throat with one clean cut of the knife

Correct throat cutting

• Use a sharp knife• Knife should be twice as long as width of neck area to be cut

• Do not sharpen knife in sight of animal• Do not wipe blood off knife on fleece or hide• Essential to sever both carotid arteries & both jugular veins• Failure to do this leads to slower bleed out, slower death &

increased suffering

© Eyes on Animals &Animal Welfare Foundation

www.halal-slaughter-watch.org

Practical advice on how to make improvements in the slaughterhouses, how to order a training course for employees, where to order better equipment to make floors anti-slip, prevent bulls from mounting etc...